You must increase your insight and knowledge. I have constantly repeated the following sentence quoted from the Commander of the Faithful: “This flag [of religion] cannot be carried except by those who resist and have insight.” [Nahjul Balaghah, Sermon 173] As you know, carrying Imam Ali’s (a.s.) flag was more difficult in some respects than carrying the Prophet’s (s.w.a.) flag. That is because, at the time of the Holy Prophet (s.w.a.), there was a clear line between enemies and friends. But under the flag of the Commander of the Faithful enemies were not clearly distinguished from friends: Enemies were saying the same things as friends, and they used to pray together at Imam Ali’s camp. In the battles of Jamal, Siffin, and Nahrawan, the people in the opposing camp prayed as well. Now what would you do in such a situation? They tell you that the opposing camp is evil. But you may say, “Evil? But they are praying and worshiping God.” Some of them, like Khawarij, used to perform highly elaborate prayers.

In the darkness of the night, one day the Commander of the Faithful approached the camp of Khawarij. He heard someone beautifully and impressively reciting a verse of the Quran in the middle of the night: “Is he who is obedient during hours of the night …” [The Holy Quran 39: 9]. Another man, who was accompanying the Commander of the Faithful, said, “Good for the man who is reciting this verse so beautifully. I wish I were a hair on his body because he will undoubtedly go to Heaven and I will enter Heaven with him.” Then the Battle of Nahrawan took place. After the enemies had been defeated and killed, the Commander of the Faithful went to bodies of the enemies. Passing by the bodies, he ordered his soldiers to roll the bodies onto their backs. Imam Ali talked to them. They were dead, but he wanted his companions to listen to what he was saying to the bodies. He ordered his companions to turn another person onto his back. Then he told the man who had accompanied him to the camp of Khawarij, “Do you know this man?” The man replied that he could not recognize the body. Imam Ali (a.s.) said, “This is the same body on which you wanted to be a hair, the body of the same man who was reciting the Quran in an impressive voice.” They rose up against Imam Ali (a.s.), the talking Quran, in the Battle of Nahrawan and charged at him with their swords drawn. That was because of lack of insight. Lack of insight made them unable to understand the situation.

(Supreme Leader’s Speech to Members of the military unit responsible for protecting the Leader -12/08/2009)

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